‘Maria By Callas’ Is Visual Tone Poem Which Brings The Legendary Opera Diva To Life

From the 1940s until her premature death in 1977, Maria Callas earned a reputation as one of the world’s greatest opera singers. Rightfully or wrongfully, she was as known as much for her personal life – her romances and alleged diva-like behavior – as for her formidable talents. Directed by photographer and film maker Tom Volf, an avowed fan, the 2017 documentary Maria by Callas brings the singer to life with a collection of archival footage, home movies and writings by Callas, voiced by opera singer Joyce DiDonato. It was released this week on Blu-ray and DVD and various digital streaming services.

Text at the film’s beginning lets us know, “This is Maria Callas in her own words, drawn from interviews, unpublished letters, diaries and memories.” It then cuts to her being interviewed by David Frost in 1970. She is poised and authoritative, as you would expect from one of the greatest musicians in the world. Viewing it today, in 2018, you can’t help but view it with a tinge of nostalgia, especially if, like me, you’re old enough to remember when women looked as she does; with long, full bodied hair, pulled over the crown of her head, and draping down her back. She looks like the kind of woman who would kick Don Draper’s ass.

“On the whole, there are two people in me,” she tells Frost. “Maria, but there also is the Callas that I have to live up to…I like to think that they both go together,” she says with a tinge of defensiveness or maybe doubt. In contrast, the person we spend the next two hours with shows little or no insecurity. She seems to know exactly who she is. It is everyone else whose mind is clouded with gossip, expectations, and prejudice.

Despite her inter-continental accent, which at times sounds British or as if English is her second language, Callas was a first generation Greek-American, born and raised in New York City. Her ambitious mother pushed her to be a singer, and later moved the family back to Greece as she was entering high school. She talks about not having a childhood, as her mother enrolled her in a musical conservatory in Athens. Though there is regret when Callas speaks of her youth, her teachers recalled her great discipline and how she was, “the last to leave.”

By the early 1940s, while still a teenager, Callas was performing professionally in Europe. Film footage of her early performances is grainy and shot from far away, giving an impressionistic collage of various career landmarks and triumphs. Little context is given, which tends to undermine their importance, though it is clear we are watching Callas come into her own.

Like the first drops of a rain storm develop into a downpour, we hear faint criticism, always from older men, grow into a chorus of disapproval. The journalist Edward R. Murrow refers to Callas as “a prima donna.” Metropolitan Opera impresario Rudolph Bing famously fired her for being difficult, while still acknowledging her enormous talent. She ran afoul of promoters and opera houses for sticking up for herself and her exacting standards, only to be reviled in the press, who she says, made her “pay dearly for my success.”

In 1957, Callas fell in love with shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis, who famously said he was attracted to her because “we were the most famous Greeks alive in the world.” Unfortunately, both were married at the time. They would carry on an on-and-odd affair for the rest of their lives, only briefly interrupted by Onassis’ marriage to former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. In letters read by DiDonato, Callas says she was blindsided by the marriage, having learned about it “in the papers,” but by the early ’70s, she and Onassis had rekindled their romance, despite him still being married.

Performances from Callas’ later years give a more detailed look at her skills as a performer, actor and singer. In interviews, she admits she wanted to have children, but the demands of her career prevented it. “Destiny’s destiny and there’s no way out,” she says matter-of-factly; all acceptance, no regrets. She spent the last years of her life living in Paris, where in her words, “people let you be.” She died there in 1977 from a heart attack at the age of 53.

As a viewing experience, Maria By Callas has much to recommend it, whether or not you’re a fan of opera or know who Maria Callas was. The visuals are stunning, like watching a vintage movie in real time, as Callas traipses around the world living the good life in one incredible outfit after another. The film dispenses of the usual talking heads, and while some details of her life are rushed past, you still get a clear picture of who she was as an artist and person.

Benjamin H. Smith is a New York based writer, producer and musician. Follow him on Twitter:@BHSmithNYC.